http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/mother-says-daughter-still-loves-israel-despite-losing-eye-at-protest-1.295002
Published 01:43 09.06.10 Latest update 04:35 09.06.10
Mother says daughter still loves Israel despite losing eye at protest
Emily Henochowicz lost an eye at a protest at the Qalandiyah checkpoint - she
was struck by a teargas grenade.
By Chaim Levinson
Emily Henochowicz returned on Saturday night to her home in Potomac, Maryland,
where she is recovering after losing an eye at a protest at the Qalandiyah
checkpoint - she was struck by a teargas grenade.
Henochowicz is Jewish, and her father, who is currently a doctor in the United
States after having lived in Israel, is the son of Holocaust survivors. The
family has visited Israel in the past.
"Her mood ranges from optimistic to sad," Henochowicz's mother Shelly Kreitman
told Haaretz. "We want to make clear that she has not stopped loving Israel
because of what happened. She said that this should not be an excuse for people
to be anti-Semitic or anti-Zionist."
Kreitman said that it was morning in the United States when they saw on the
news that a flotilla was bound for the Gaza Strip. They called their daughter
to warn her to stay away from demonstrations, which could become dangerous.
By the time the parents reached their daughter on her cellphone, she was
already at Hadassah University Hospital, Ein Karem.
Emily Henochowicz after being hit by a teargas grenade at the
Qalandiyah checkpoint.
Photo by: Daniel Bar-On
Kreitman says her daughter told them she was about to go into surgery, that she
was all right but was going to lose an eye.
"She went to the demonstration to protest the raid on the flotilla," Kreitman
said. "She is not a strong girl, she's an artist, and she lifted a flag with
both hands.
"To say that she threw something is just a lie. The claim that the teargas
canister first hit the wall is an absolute lie. I say this because I saw the
video and I also had confirmation from the doctors that it was a direct hit
because there are burns on her face from the canister."
Henochowicz is due to undergo another operation today.
"She has a fractured cheekbone, in her eye socket, and her left eye was removed
entirely. Her jaw was sewn shut. Luckily she is young, healthy and did not
suffer any brain damage," Kreitman said.
The Henochowicz family, meanwhile, has hired attorney Michael Sfard. "We intend
to file a civil suit for all the suffering that my daughter and my family have
suffered. We want an investigation because we cannot accept what happened to
our daughter and to other people," Kreitman said.
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